Full Circle
by Maror
Summary: Booth gets some news that throws him for a loop. A sliceoflife ficlet. [BB, established relationship]


A/N: Part of something larger that may never be finished, but this can stand on its own two feet so here it is. Short, slightly random, and hopefully sweet. The title has very little to do with the actual story. I was listening to Aerosmith when I decided to post. :)

* * *

"Stay there, I'll get it." Booth gestured at her to keep eating, and put his napkin next to his plate as he headed for the phone.

"Hello?" pause. "Is Parker okay?"

Rebecca, then. Brennan cocked her head, straining to hear him in the next room.

"Okay... Yeah. That's... that's great. I mean-" Another pause, longer this time. "Yeah, I understand. Maybe we'll hit the arcade this weekend or something. Give him some time to mull it over." Pause. "Yeah, that's fine. We'll be here. And hey, congratulations."

She heard the click of the receiver in the cradle and he reappeared a moment later. He sat down and picked up his fork, twirling it in his mashed potatoes. She waited.

"Rebecca's pregnant."

"Oh." _Oh._

"Yeah. She's going to tell Parker tomorrow. Wanted to let me know, in case- I mean, he's been an only child for nine years, y'know? It'll be... difficult for him to adjust."

She nodded, and watched him play with his food for a few minutes. It was an issue for him, children. He was an excellent father, and she knew he would jump at the chance for another child. Or more. And sometimes, when he was in this mood, she almost felt guilty for denying him that. Almost.

"I'm sorry, Booth."

He sighed. "We're not going to have this conversation again. It's fine."

"You could have more children if you weren't with me."

Booth put his fork down and gave her his full attention. "Yes. I could have more children if I wasn't with you." He leaned forward, getting sauce on the sleeve of his shirt. "But I _want_ to be with you. I want to have children _with_ you. But if that's not in the cards, then.." He shrugged, and sat back. "If I had to chose between you and more kids? There's just no contest. You win, hands down."

She nodded, and he returned to his dinner. They ate in silence for a few moments before he spoke again.

"Besides, we couldn't do what we do if we had a couple of toddlers rolling around under our feet. No more late nights, no more trips. No more field work, at least not both of us together- no more two month stints to the other side of the world to dig up bodies. We could always hire a nanny, I guess, but what's the point of having kids if you're going to let someone else raise them?" He took a sip of wine and was quiet for another moment. Brennan nodded again. Letting him get it out of his system uninterrupted was always the best way. He stared into his glass.

"What we do is more important than raising kids. We give people peace. Parents who don't know where their children are; husbands and wives, brothers and sisters -we give them back. And we're good at it. It would be... selfish to stop that as long as we can keep on doing it."

"I guess it would."

He picked up his fork again. "Anyway," he said around a mouthful of roast beef, "we won't be able to do this forever."

She frowned. "Do what forever?"

He gestured back and forth between them. "This going out and catching bad guys thing. Eventually I'll have to take a desk job, and you'll go back to the lab. It's years away, but I guess-" he paused, looking unsure how to proceed. "I guess I always figured when that time came, when we were both, y'know, around more... we might- take in a couple of foster kids." He peered at her from under his brows, and she stared back.

"I mean, I know we've never discussed it or anything," he said quickly. "And it's kind of presumptuous of me to-" he stopped when he saw her getting up. "I'm sorry, Temperance, I didn't mean to- I just-" He stopped again when he felt her arms wrap around his shoulders and her chin come to rest near his ear.

"No," she said softly. "That's a wonderful idea."

He put his hand on her forearm and squeezed gently. After a few minutes and something that sounded suspiciously like a sniffle, she kissed his cheek and went into the kitchen to get dessert.


End file.
